Over the years “Christmas Carol” has been done in many manners. Often it is a sweet and clearly loving view of one man being able to change himself for the better. His better — and the world’s too.
Other productions have seen Christmas Carols filled with over-heated attempts ton be obvious about this classic. Then we’ve had some over wrought works and once or twice a show so worked into telling a story of darkness where the whole meaning itself has been lost.
This year director Mark Valdez has come up with a version that is all the way big, all the way loud. It can be, you think at first, that this Christmas Carol is goin’ overboard, going to manhandle the great story by Charles Dickens with roaring power alone.
It seems that Ebenezer Scrooge, played by Trinity stalwart Stephen Thorne, is going to be a shouting, driven, hateful man. In fact, the whole show seems it will be nothing but rock-um, sock-em all the way.
But, thank goodness, this “Christmas Carol” works its way back to being the loving, hopeful story it simply has to be. Eventually, Thorne softens Sctooge, makes him see, once again, that life is more than winning at all counts.
He has considerable help, too. Michael McGarty’s set is a hard rock piece. It is centralized and usable for actors to fly through time and again bringing with them surprise and drive. Gary Lennon’s costumes are somewhat odd, being both old time and new. But they work, finally.
Other Trinity pros, Mauro Hantman , Timothy Crowe, Fred Sullivan Jr. handle this quick but accurate production as the old pros they are.
And this year Trinity has decided to bring in various choirs, running from high school groups to the Newport Navy Choristers to the Women’s Chorus of Rhode Island to the Providence Gay Men’s Chorus. At opening night, the singers were the West Warwick High School Concert Chorale who aided considerably to the show.
So, mark this year’s “Christmas Carol” as a work that may have gone overboard, at times. But, thank goodness it did cut back, and finally reached the goal of this classic story.
Eventual y the production gets Charles Dickens’ one time thought that “There is a wisdom of the head and ‘ ‘ ‘ there is a wisdom of the heart.”
“A Christmas Carol” continues through December 30th at Trinity Rep. Bill Gale writes about the performing arts for The Public’s Radio.
